


The Familiar Cat

by Ninjagirl27



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Cat AU, M/M, Magic and Witchcraft, Witch AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-07-25 23:27:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20034094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ninjagirl27/pseuds/Ninjagirl27
Summary: In a world of Witches and Magic, its hard for Goro to go at the world alone. Luckily for him, his familiar Akira always had back through thick and thin and even petty problems. Akira would do anything for his partner, even if it included some shady activities on his part.





	The Familiar Cat

**Author's Note:**

> This was suppose to be a short one shot but then I didn't stop writing. This was a really random au that I got attached to and might continue at some point. But I should be working on other writing pieces. Whoops.

The books piled on Akechi’s poor rickety desk wobbled slightly as he sat back down at his desk. Plucking one of books from the tipping tower, he opened the cover and began skimming through the pages. The old worn pages were all of spells he either didn’t care about, too cryptic to bother with, or spells he’d already mastered. There wasn’t much to do when your whole library had not been updated in forever and so here he sat in contempt boredom. He was feeling… something, something bad and unnerving and pathetic. He didn’t want to spend another moment dwelling on it, and so he didn’t because he focused his mind was on that book. He was so determined to be distracted by the book that he didn’t notice the soft patter of paws above him. 

A little head peeked down curiously at the witch with a book. With a bored expression the black cat hopped down from the stack and landed on the desk. The cat stepped over the small pile of papers and stared expectantly at him. Its white tipped tail swung back and forth as it waited. After a moment, the impatient cat mewled loudly, making Akechi jump in his seat. Once he rescued he finally noticed his familiar, staring annoyed. Even as a cat, Akira was needy as ever.

“What do you want?” he groaned. He flipped back to the page and continued reading as the cat spoke. 

“You don’t read like this unless you want to forget something,” he said plainly, “what’s wrong?”

“What? No, it's nothing. Just something dumb.”

“And you won’t elaborate?”

“There’s no need, it's completely idiotic what happened today.”

“Right…,” Akira paused and simply stared at him, “so who was it?”

“Akira, stop. Nothing happened. Just some guy challenged me to a duel. It's nothing I can’t handle.”

“Oh, are you going to use you’re ‘radical skills’ to put him down?”

“Nah, not even worth my time.”

“Aw,” the cat pouted, “can I handle it then?” He hopped off the desk and onto the plush carpet beneath him. Landing on the floor he began to arch his back, a sign that he was going to shapeshift into a more useful form. He let out a low purr as he let his magic flow through him.

“ I won't stop you,” he announced before he swiftly turned to the figure beside him, “ but don't cause anymore trouble, Akira.” There on his rug sat a boy his age with black curly hair and thick frames on his nose. In full robes and accessories, his familiar gave him a cheeky smile and a wave as he pushed himself off the floor. He was certainly one papered cat, with a satchel covered in trinkets and oversized boots to boot. Small cat ears peaked out from the sea of curls and his tail began to sway while Akira let out a chuckle. 

“ Little old me won't cause any trouble, Goro.” He sauntered over to the other side of the desktop leaned in close to the witch. “ Just gonna pick some stuff up for dinner since, ya’know, we haven't had a proper meal together in forever.” 

Goro felt his patient gaze on him and stared up into his now human-ish friend. “ That sounds lovely, just don't stick your nose where doesn't belong, all right?” He gave him a playful smile but inside he was dead serious. He knew Akira's tendencies to get involved with things he didn't need to, or get distracted by little problems no one but himself cared about. His heart of pure gold couldn't help but attach himself to every little problem and solve it at his own cost. He did not need to have Akira involved with his petty argument anyways but getting him to ignore anything was as close to possible you could get. 

“Ok, ok don't worry, I’ll just be to the market and back nothing else,” He leaned in even closer and pushed down the book Goro was holding and pressed his nose to his, “ and maybe catch up with some friends who knows, who knows,” he sputtered nervously. His nervousness didn't go unnoticed as a confused smile slipped into Goro’s face.

“I'm not stopping you from going out ok? Just get out of here already.” 

“Kay!” Akira cheered as he pushed himself off Goro and into the center of the room. He pushed his tail under the layers of robe and made a quick turn toward the door. As he checked his bag and pockets for money, he took a glance at the boy studying dutifully with a scowl. His expression when he thought no one was looking spoke volumes, he definitely had a plan brewing. With a familiar dramatic flare he yanked open the door and took a leap forward, letting blinding light spill into their home. 

“You forgot the hat!” Goro shouted without looking up. A bolt of black dashed back through the doorway as Akira pounced back to the desk. He gently yanked the hat off of Goro’s head followed by a playful head rub. 

“What would I do without you?”

“Draw unwanted attention?”

“I guess, but I wouldn't mind it.”

“But I would.”

“Alright, I’ll actually head out now,” the familiar bounded backwards and left the room, leaving the door wide open. Before Goro could even think to get up he saw a black shadow return and leaned onto the wall. “Oh, and don’t eat anything. I know you and your stash of candy so don’t even think about dessert before dinner.” He couldn’t help but roll his eyes and smile as he watched the door shut with a bang. Now he was left with his books, a quiet room and an uneasy feeling in his gut. Despite Akira’s promise, he knew the wildcard wouldn’t listen. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The marketplace was alive with the sounds of chatter and music as the plethora of stalls lined the sides. Tents of every color showed off their goods of every variety but he wasn’t interested in any. From the rainbows of potions to the magic modifiers and other whimsical nicknacks, Akira was looking for rice. Spices, meats, vegetables, and candles were all on his shopping list plus a little extra something for his surprise. He adjusted the oversized hat to cover his cat ears as he walked up to a vendor. 

It wasn’t a common sight to see a tail on a person and he didn’t need to be pestered on it anyways. He figured it’d be easier to just hide them, plus avoiding the freaks who’d want to study him wasn’t bad either. It wasn’t that he wasn’t proud of who he was, but its was simply easier to just blend in with everyone else, a sentiment he did not share. Only one person knew about the tail and ears, and he was his partner, who asked him to keep a low profile It wasn’t that he didn’t like his ears, Goro was the one who brought them out, but it didn’t stop Akira from feeling bad hiding the truth. His human form was Goro’s gift and yet he was hiding it from everybody. It just didn’t sit right with him as the fabric of the hat covered his pride.

After buying all the main ingredients for his dish, he walked over to the next area of the plaza. His eyes scanned for any stall selling spices until someone caught his eye. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw bright yellow hair a signature of Ryuji’s style. As he looked closer he saw Ann’s pigtails sticking out from under her hat and Yusuke standing motionless next to her. The two blondes seemed to be arguing as the helpless artist watched in confusion. Before he realized it his feet carried him closer to them, picking up the pace as he got closer. Yusuke turned toward Akira and gave him a quaint smile.

“Hello Aki-” his soft spoken voice was cut off.

“Woah! It's Akira!”shouted Ryuji as he pointed with delight.

“Hey, its you! Why do you always seem to pop up out of nowhere when we need you,” Ann commented. He knew her comment was just a joke but she wasn’t half wrong. When you’re a cat, it's not hard to watch you friend’s silly antics unfold from afar and he did have a tendency to hop in on the fun. It was a habit of his which no one seemed to mind, but it didn't stop from feeling guilty when he joined their plans last minute. However, this time was a coincidence and anything that happened next was all by chance.

“Hey guys, what have I missed?”

“Oh, we're talkin bout who’s paying for lunch today,” Ryuji explained, “ which shouldn't be me cause I paid last time!”

“No you didn't!” Ann shot back, “I paid for it and you just bought sweets.”

“Yeah, for all of us, so now it's your turn.”

“Why don’t you pay for what you bought?” Akira questioned.

“Cause Yusuke spent his money on supplies so one of us gotta cough some up from.”

“My apologies but, my heart simply couldn't resist.”

Akira shook his head, “I’ll pay if you guys let me join in on your lunch break.”

“You will?!” the trio shouted in unison. 

“By the sound of that i can guess your inviting me, huh,” he asked with a shrug.

“Of course your coming along, we’d take you even if you didn’t want too” Ann cheered. She grabbed his arm and pulled him towards her, then linked her arms with his. He grabbed his hat before it slipped off and adjusted quickly before letting himself get dragged elsewhere. The two boys follow suite as they wandered to the food district down a few winding alleys. The group of friends chatted until they saw an empty cafe with very few people. They stepped inside and began ordering food as they continued their conversation. They went on as normal until a subject peaked his interest.

“Hey did ya hear about the duel?” Ann asked. 

“What duel?,” Akira said curiously, “I've been out of the loop so you'll need to catch me up on this.”

“Really? Even I know about the situation and I'm not even keen on gossip.” Yusuke commented

“For real? I thought you'd be the first one to know since that Akechi dude is involved.”Ryuji added.

“Well now you guys have to spill the beans, I’m dying to know.”

“Welp, some guy named -actually I don’t remember but i'm sure it started with a y- challenged Akechi to a duel over a girl.” The idea seemed to click in his mind as he couldn’t help but smile inside. ‘That’s the petty part, huh?’ Their food arrived as Ann continued to explain, “The guy shouted and threatened him in the middle of the streets, but Akechi just walked away,” she leaned back in her seat and took a sip of her drink, “I’m kinda surprised he didn’t instantly blow him up. I mean he was saying literally every single thing to piss of anyone and he seems to take it without a hitch.”

“Yeah, if I was him I’d hex him the moment I saw him. There’s no reason to get all worked up at some guy over a girl you aren't even dating!”

“I have to agree with you,” Yusuke mentioned, “although I wouldn’t go as far the idea would certainly cross my mind.”

“So what did he tell you?” Ann questioned, “How did act after? I doubt he could hold back his anger forever. Do you think he’s going to accept the challenge?”

“Oh yeah! Ain't that dude the one who beat Makoto on the Spellcaster’s Test!” 

“Welp, all that power ain't going anywhere,” Akira sighed, “he isn't doing anything about it. Just mope around in our house and ‘anger read’ his spell books.”

“What! That's totally unfair!” Ann spat. She brought her cup up to her lips and realized that she'd already emptied her cup.

“So that jerk just gonna get away with that bull?!” Ryuji slapped his hand down onto the table and crossed his arms. 

“It seems so, if Akechi doesn't take action.” The artist shook his head as he stared down at his unfinished plate. The crew seemed to fall silent as the thought of injustice settled in. Their minds stirred as each one thought about their situation.

Akira wasn't one to stand by, especially for his partner. He was a man of action after all and letting someone walk all over town without consequence didn't sit right. As always, a grand idea popped into mind that would fix everything. 

“If I'm going to be perfectly honest, Akechi is completely pissed off.” The familiar stated out of the blue. All eyes landed on him as he continued, “He thinks he's too prim and proper to get down and dirty in a fight, but that doesn't mean he won't.” He placed his hand on his chin and smirked, “If we give he him the right push he’ll handle the rest without a hitch.”

The three all began to lighten up as they leaned forward to hear more. “Man, you always got something planned don'tcha,” Ryuji shouted. The small group began planning their next move with excitement. Akira was determined to ‘get equal’ for Goro whether he realized it or not.

~~~~~~~~~

The moon began to rise as Akira tried to slip into his shared home with Goro. With his bags in hand he pulled open the heavy wooden door with his boot and swung it. He struggled to maintain balance and remain quiet all while carrying bags of ingredients for dinner. While trying to stabilize he fell forward but stumped his foot on the creaky floorboards. Panicked, he dashed back out before he was seen. Slowly he took a peek inside expecting the witch to be staring him down like prey, instead he was greeted with a sight for sore eyes.

Goro silently slept on a pile of papers surrounded by books on the same desk he left him on. His chest methodically rose and fell as he had slipped into dreamland hours ago. Akira’s heart swooned as his immediate instincts told him to simply cuddle up and nap along with him. He nearly forgot about his planned dinner until the sound of bags falling to tears ground broke his focus. Suddenly the promise of curry had him scoop up his groceries, shut the door, and leap into the kitchen before he could blink. 

The loud door made Goro shift in his seat but maintained his light slumber. Akira placed down the bags of food and lit the fire beneath the stove top. He began to prepare for their late -dinner by chopping up the vegetables and meats. Next, he tossed a light sprinkle of oil into the hot pan, creating a loud sizzle in the kitchen. Then he began to cook the rice, waiting for it to become bright white. The irresistible smell of spices filled their home as the curry began to cook, a nostalgic smell to Akira that made him smile. Now that dinner was brewing, he knew he had to clear up some space for food. Striding over to the book riddled desk, he started to move the texts one by one. His partner soundly slept as his desk was rearranged to better fit its needs. As Akira moved the books and checked on dinner, he came to an impasse on the desk. The last book was nestled right under Goro’s head, plus the papers under it which required him to wake up his sleeping beauty. Reluctantly, he gently shook his shoulder and cooed, “Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey.”

His eyes fluttered open as his vision cleared up. He lifted up his head and looked around his desk, all cleared of his studies. In his immediate sight was two candles which suddenly sprung to life with a spell. His attention was drawn away when he felt the book between his arm get pulled away. His head turned forward to see his friend smiling back at him, books and papers in hand. “Wha- when, when did you get back,” he yawned as he rubbed the bits of sleep out of his eyes. 

“I got back a while ago,”he bluffed but spoke with such confidence that he couldn’t lie.

“But, why didn’t you wake me up? I could’ve cleaned up for dinner myself.”  
“Sorry, I just couldn’t bring myself to wake you up,” Akira leaned over the table and kissed his forehead and placed his hat back onto him. His ears freely bounced up and down while he passed him and back into the kitchen. Goro watched his long tail slink past him while hiding the pink of his cheeks with his hand. 

“That’s the dumbest excuses you’ve given me, and that’s saying a lot,” he mumbled into his hand. 

“Shhhh, just let me have this and set the plates please.”

“Of course,” he got out from his seat and stretched. His bones cracked and popped from being stationary all day. With one final reach, he sighed and walked over to the cupboard. He looked out into the blue sky, surprised to see a few stars already out. He hadn’t realized how long he’d been studying or napping.

“Smells wonderful, it’s curry right?”

“Great job detective, it's the same thing I make all the time.”

“ Well, it's really good curry so I don’t mind.”

“Gosh it better be, else Sojiro would kill me.”

“Sorry, who?”

“Oh, yeah he’s… well, hard to explain off the top of my head,” he picked up his wooden spoon and began to stir up the mix, “This is his recipe and he took care of me for a while before I met you. You should meet him sometime, he’s great.”

“...Maybe, it sounds like it’d be fun.”

“Yeah! He makes the best coffee too. Hey did you set the table yet?”

“I’m getting to it.” Goro placed the plates and silverware on the table and set up the napkins. He turned and walked to Akira’s side and grabbed the cooked rice and divided it between the plates. Then he took his normal seat and took a deep breath, the smell from the stove was becoming irresistible. He turned to face Akira, resting his chin on the chair’s back, and watched his tail twirl in place. He’d learned that it was a sign of uncontrollable joy, whether it was a cozy new scarf he could add to his nap spot or the moments before he left to play with friends. He watched as it picked up its pace, spinning faster and faster until coming to a stop. 

“Alright, its done!” He turned to face him and held out the pan in front of himself. With a cheerful smile he boasted, “Get ready for a meal of a live time, Goro. Curry will never be the same after you try it!”

“Just serve it already, are you going to let me starve.”

“Oh, stop. I know you’re excited.” He brought over the burning pan and his wooden spoon to pour the curry onto the rice. The mere scent of it made them both salivate, their hunger became apparent. Right on queue, Goro’s stomach growled loudly. He clutched his belly in a futile attempt to muffle the sound, but it was obvious to them both. “Alright then!” he sat down across from the witch and rubbed his hands together, “lets dig in, I’m starving.”

Together, they grabbed their spoons and began eating like it’s their last meal. Akira revealed in the tasted but he watched for Goro’s reaction. He stayed mostly neutral until a small smile peaked though his spoon. Failing to keep his composure, he opted to cover his mouth with his hand and laugh. “Why are you staring at me?” he asked between giggles, “you’re looking at me like a fish in a tank.”

“Sorry, I just need to make sure you love it. So you do, right?”

“What does it look like?” Akira could only shrug as they continued their, what Akira would call, ‘romantic dinner’ of curry and candles. They chatted about any topic that came to mind, you're past the present and the plans for the future. They joked and laughed and had a heart to heart with each other, what they'd consider a good talk. Silly flirts mixed with snarky quips as the two tinkered on the edge of debate. In Goro’s mind, this was all some dramatic dinner as per usual of the character in front of him , but Akira wouldn't lie if you asked him if he'd been on a date that night. As time passed, their plates were cleared of curry and the conversation dragged on. as they are banter continued, Akira leaned back in his seat and stared off into the distance.

“ I know you're not one to gossip but I got to get this off my chest.”

“ Don't even start it's not eve-,” he was swiftly cut off.

“Rumor has it, Tohru Ikaban is deathly afraid of crows,” he blurted out loud. The room fell quiet as Akira dared to look back, Goro’s expression was almost unreadable with his gaze down at the plate in front of him. The cat would describe it as somewhere between disappointment, curiosity, and animosity. His mouth opened about to apologize until something unexpected happened.

“ That's good information to know,” he said without emotion. His eyes were still fixed to the plate on the table, his lips were pursed into a thin line. Akira watched with bated breath as he watched the boy across from him suddenly stood up and grabbed his plate. With a lack of expression on his face he robotically walked over and stood above Akira. 

“Uhhhhh, you ok?”he wearily asked. He watched has Goro raised his empty hand and gently placed it between his ears. He petted him with a smile, an irresistible feeling that Akira loved. He couldn’t help but let his tail spring to life and a satisfied purr escaped him. With a good grin plastered on his face he admitted, “Oh my god, I thought you were going to kill me for stalking that guy.” 

“Wait, you what?” he asked while still petting him. 

“Mmhhmm, asked some pals to research em. Nothing special really. I do it all the time.”

“Why do you always do something questionably illegal?”

“It’s so i get attention like this.”

“I should stop enabling you, shouldn't I.”

“It won’t stop me though, it's simply in my nature. 

“Of course,” he reassured before clearing up the table, “I just wish you could worry about yourself for once.”

“But then I wouldn’t be a good familiar, no?”

“Hhhm, I guess why that makes you the best for me.” he flicked on the faucet and began washing the plates, “you bring out my...ambition to put it lightly.”

“Nah, you already have plenty of ambition already. I just so happen to guide it properly,” he plainly corrected. He finally stood up and moved over to somewhere more comfortable. Finding an empty spot on one of their couches, he fell backwards into the sea of pillows and cushions. He let his eyes close and relax for a moment, then he switched forms. He let his hands revert to soft paws and his overall size shrunk. With loud meows, he let himself curl up on relax in the seat of luxury. “I’m all worn out for today, so let me rest please.”

“Don’t worry Akira, I think I’m going to sleep early tonight anyways.”

Peaking his interest, Akira turning to Goro’s direction and watched as he walked toward him. “You have plans tomorrow? What’s going on.”

“Well, I thought you 'd know since you put so much work into it,” he gently picked up his familiar by the hips and began to cradle him. Placing a kiss on his forehead he continued, “we have a duel to attend to and I thought you’d want to tag along, like a good familiar.” With the cat in hand he carried him over to the bed room for two, a cat and person.

“Hey, what are you implying. I wouldn’t miss it for the world, honey.”

“So, let's get to bed. We got to be up by 6 sharp.”

“Always like clockwork, just wake me up when it's time.

“Alright, just don’t scratch me. I know you aren’t feral,” he laid Akira down onto the nest of blankets and took off his coat. He snapped the lights off and slipped under the sheets into the bed. “Goodnight, Akira.”

“Goodnight, Goro. See you tomorrow.” 

Their home fell silent as they began to sleep the night away.


End file.
